By air
Ayers Rock Airport (AYQ), ~20 km from the rock
Australia & New Zealand · Australia
Uluru, Australia
The red heart of the outback
Getting there
Best time to visit
May to September — cooler days, cold nights
Don't miss
Uluru
Kata Tjuta
The Cultural Centre
Kings Canyon (a longer drive)
Things to do
Sunrise and sunset viewings
The base walk
Kata Tjuta's Valley of the Winds
The Field of Light
Where to eat
Sources: Photo: Thomas Schoch · CC BY-SA 3.0
What to pack
A fly net, a sun hat, warm layers for desert nights
A quieter corner
Walpa Gorge in Kata Tjuta, on a morning walk
Questions travellers ask
When is the best time to see Uluru?
May to September, when the days are cooler — though the nights turn cold.
How do I get to Uluru?
Fly into Ayers Rock Airport (AYQ), about 20 km from the rock.
What is there to do at Uluru?
Catch a sunrise and a sunset viewing, do the base walk, see the Field of Light and visit the Cultural Centre. At Kata Tjuta, walk the Valley of the Winds, or Walpa Gorge in the morning.
What should I pack for Uluru?
A fly net, a sun hat and warm layers for the desert nights.
About Uluru
- Desert
Where it is
Uluru is a vast sandstone monolith in the southern Northern Territory of central Australia, rising about 348 m above the surrounding desert plain in Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park, south-west of Alice Springs.
History
Uluru is sacred to the Aṉangu, the Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara people whose ancestors have lived here for many thousands of years, and it is central to Tjukurpa, their law and creation stories. Europeans named it Ayers Rock in 1873; the park was handed back to its Traditional Owners in 1985 and is jointly managed with Parks Australia, and climbing the rock was permanently closed in 2019 out of respect for its cultural significance.
People
The Aṉangu, who speak Pitjantjatjara and Yankunytjatjara, are the Traditional Owners of Uluru and Kata Tjuta and share the park's management; their artists paint dot works and carve wooden punu. Aṉangu guides lead walks that share bush foods and Tjukurpa stories, and the nearby resort town of Yulara houses visitors and staff.
Known for
- Sunrise and sunset colours on Uluru
- The base walk around the rock
- Kata Tjuta and the Valley of the Winds
- The Field of Light installation
- The Cultural Centre and Aṉangu art
Did you know?
Uluru is made of arkose, a coarse sandstone that is grey inside; its famous red colour comes from iron minerals in the rock rusting at the surface.
We haven't written a guide for this place yet — you can still plan a trip here.